Friday 23 September 2011

promises and (a lack of) sleep

Hullo lovely readers! Indeed, I have not been hit by that stray satellite that Yahoo tells me will soon implode on as yet unknown destination, but am alive and will probably remain so for some time yet. We are nearing the slow season market-wise, with only five weeks and about as many tourists floating about in the increasing heat. And yet, our little shop seems to be plodding along better and better every week. Dave ventured out a few weeks back, bit the bullet and bought a gazebo, and last week managed a 'system' whereby everything is crammed into our little Mazda within an inch of it's life, and my face is pressed pleasantly against the windscreen (I'm joking, that's not legal, advisable or comfortable, but is an exercise for the aspiring contortionist).

We've also got a whole heap of postcards- handy for all of those holiday postcards you've been putting off- they're so pretty you only need fill out your address and your loved ones will think all their Christmases have come at once! Also very handy for offloading any unwanted shrapnel you might have, you know, weighing down your pockets.



If it's groceries that's weighing you down, we've decided the best way to support local initiatives in banning plastic bags is to make our own- for $25 you can have your very own Nariko tote:



And coming later this week, another featuring the super-popular Cloud Princess:



In the way of prints over the past few weeks, I've sold out of: 'Crimson Cloaked and Hearted', 'Redjamjellysplat', 'Tea Time' and 'White Lace and Snow'. Originals are still available for all of these besides 'Tea Time' and 'Redjamjellysplat', and are available for sale after December. I'm selling fast out of 'The Cloud Princess', 'I  ♥ Bubble Tea', 'Alice Liddell's Pink Flamingo', 'Gnome Tea' and 'The Wondrous Cycling Piggy'. You are more than welcome to send me an email or swing by one of my market stalls to pop a deposit on one of these beauties before they sell out- they would make wonderful Christmas presents! 

And, because of the sheer number of lovely ladies asking after them, and because we hate disappointed faces in the pursuit of bling, Dave and I have been pulling a few all-nighters to put our sweet allsort necklaces back on the table:




















Sorry folks, there's no custom-orders on these. Every mixed necklace is treated as an individual piece of wearable art, and is, like the fox in 'The Little Prince', 'unique in all the world'. I am considering doing multiples of the watermelons however, but you might just have to hold your wee horses on this one- these are a labour of love and when all's said and done, each necklace can take up to a day to make.

And, last but not the least of my 3am bedtime efforts this week, a new painting, 'Promises and Sleep':



All of this contributes to a very pretty-looking little set-up, if I do say so myself!

All nice things for a wonderful weekend,
Mel x

Thursday 8 September 2011

and on the grumpy star shop today: something old, something newer and something . . . pink!






Good morning lovely readers! Today, and Thursdays in particular, find up to my shoulders, not in cake and Caran D'Ache pencils as I would like (come on, we all have weird fantasies about it raining watercolour pencils, right?) but into-do lists, which are decidedly much less fun. And also very nearly sold out of another edition- namely, 'Redjamjellysplat!'. If you've had your eye on her now is the time to bite the bullet and snavel the very last one, my own copy (the A.P. or artist's proof) in fact! She's been so popular I just know someone will come along one night and just fall in love- and I know better than anyone the eleventh commandment for all Artskind: 'Thou shalt not stand in the way of beautiful useless objects coveted by thy neighbour'.

And in the way of said objects, here's a few little beauties I've popped up on the Grumpy Star shop recently. I drew "The Goose-Girl" over Christmas last year and I'm very proud of her, created as she is of the humble mechanical pencil and nothing more. "Alice Liddell's Pink Flamingo" is a painting I finished yesterday, based on a drawing I did 6 months ago (no chocolate-based treats for you bright sparks who manage to decode my thinly veiled reference to a certain piece of literature lately enjoying a lot of reinventing). And 'Dorothy, Toto and New Shoes' was a drawing I did while sitting in the Spanish wetlands one sunny day shortly after this year's Bologna Book Fair. She was a lot of fun, and I especially like Toto as a sort of minature labrador.

Speaking of dogs, I have taken it into my head I would very much like to be the owner of a French bulldog in the not-too distant future. Monty refuses to comment on the matter and Dave's response was a rather emphatic 'No' when I sought a penny for his thoughts. Perhaps I need to refer him to the eleventh commandment?

Happy Thursdays to all, and to all- happy seeking of beautiful useless objects!
Mel x

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